2015 Archive Stories Norco

Riverside Community College District’s schools have received federal grants for $6.6 million to help low income and first-generation college students, students with disabilities and veterans, the district announced Thursday, July 30. The grants provide academic help, career exploration and other services to help students meet colleg

A feisty quarterhorse eyed Eric Peniata suspiciously as the Riverside Fire engineer moved in slowly with a halter in his hands.
Wearing a blue firefighter’s uniform and yellow helmet, Peniata was a bit intimidated by the 1,200-pound beast inside the small corral. Until then, he hadn’t handled a creature any heftier than a dog

The air was cool and dusty, and the whinny of horses and the loud murmur of the audience filled the arena at the 10th annual National Day of the American Cowboy at the George Ingalls Equestrian Event Center on Saturday.
The event kicked off with the Grand Entry Celebration, which included an introduction to a number of foreign and local

Dakota bucked a bit, but Milagro was smooth in the saddle.
Changing horses was no big deal to Special Olympian Robert Seignious, who was fine-tuning his equestrian skills Wednesday, July 22, in Norco.
“It’s fun and I like to win medals,” he said with a smile.
The South Carolina resident was among the 10-

Two men who officials say burglarized a Target in Norco are suspected of stealing from other Target stores in the Riverside and San Bernardino areas.
Jermaine Lynn Henderson, 36, and Derrick Monte Reed, 37, were arrested Saturday, July 18, at a Target store at 1290 Hamner Ave.,

A fire that broke out at a Norco home has left two people displaced, officials said.
The fire was reported about 11:27 p.m. Friday, July 17 in the 3600 block of Vine Avenue. The blaze tore through the home's attic and two other rooms, Cal Fire spokeswoman Jennifer Fuhrman said.
The fire was contained about 12:07 a.m. Firefighters

The Norco Library could get an upgrade as early as year’s end, bringing with it a host of possibilities for the Old Hamner Road facility. The library turned 85 earlier this month, and Riverside County librarian Barbara Howison said the community has outgrown it. The county will accept applications from Norco property owners u

Local residents can watch Riverside's new large animal rescuers go through final training Friday, July 24, before the team is launched.
The city’s Horse & Animal Rescue Team will demonstrate technical rescue operations such as lifting life-size horse mannequins into the air, heavy-duty rigging and handling of live horses from 8

An armed man who stole from a Target store in Norco is at large and sheriff's officials are asking the public to help identify him.
The man walked into the building in the 1200 block of Hamner Avenue on Sunday, July 12, and, about 6:12 p.m., stole some property and fled in a vehicle, sheriff's officials said

Norco will celebrate the National Day of the American Cowboy with its annual festivities Saturday, July 25, to the George Ingalls Equestrian Event Center in Horsetown, USA. Gates will open to the public at 3 p.m. with opening ceremonies beginning at 5 p.m. The grand entry celebration will feature the National Light Horse Association comin

Charlie Wolcott, severely injured when he was hit by a truck eight years ago while crossing a downtown Corona street, can’t talk about the impact.
But little sister Dianne Ward can.
Wolcott, a Norco native, sleeps a lot these days.
More than three years after slowly emerging from a coma, the 61-year-old didn’t

Nearly a month after a Riverside County horse died of equine herpes, 19 horses that came in contact with the infected horse have been cleared from quarantine.
The incident was reported by the California Department of Food and Agriculture on June 16, after a Riverside County quarter horse and mule returning from Mule Days in Bishop showed

A Riverside man who allegedly burglarized a Sprint store in Norco on June 11 was arrested Thursday, police said.
The suspect, Ronald Jenkins, 36, was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside on suspicion of burglary.
The incident occurred on June 11, shortly after 9:55 a.m. The suspect reportedly walked into t

Developers say a Norco off-track horse-betting facility should be operational by spring 2016, but residents who’ve waited on the project more than a year aren’t putting any money on it.
The City Council approved the $3 million facility in November 2013. Since then, the developers, S&S Venues CA, LLC, have surpassed a prop

Plant operators are hopeful an estimated $5 million in technology will provide a viable solution to end a bitter and stinky dispute with their closest neighbors over bad odors.
Seventeen years after it was first turned on, a wastewater treatment plant in Eastvale is being upgraded and enlarged, a multimillion-dollar project that will inc

Norco will spend $15.8 million on projects during the coming year, including $2.2 million on a water storage tank intended to remedy a long-standing hot water problem in the western part of the city. Much of Norco’s water is pumped out of wells at temperatures of 96 degrees or higher, and city officials often receive complaints abou

A Norco woman who got lost near Mount Baldy was rescued Tuesday, June 9, by San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies.
Lisa Pietron, 48, called for help about 9 p.m. Tuesday and said she was lost in Cucamonga Canyon and could not find her way out, a sheriff's news release said.
A search ensued. Deputies combed the area on off-high

A college district’s largest-ever grant is expected to usher in career education programs at western Riverside County high schools and the opportunity for participating students to continue training at local community colleges, officials said Friday.
Riverside Community College District officials announced that they received a gran

Lying in a hospital bed during a chemotherapy infusion, Jorge Garcia was told the Make-A-Wish program would fulfill one of his dreams.
The Corona High School student was ambivalent.
“It’s almost scary when they tell you you’ve been selected,” Garcia, now 19, said. “It kind of makes you think: ‘

Saddle up, head to Horsetown USA and meet two of the country’s top pitmaster chefs at a “Meat and Greet.”
Myron Mixon and Moe Cason, well-known on the competitive grill circuit, will headline Norco’s Brew n’ Que Festival from Friday, May 29, through Sunday, May 31, at the George Ingalls Equestrian Event Cent

Each day, Waste Management moves 130,000 pounds of horse poop – roughly the weight of 37 mid-sized cars – from Norco to a recycling center in Chino.
Amid worries that the facility may close, the city wants to ensure it has a place to dump the droppings.
That concern led Norco City Council to deny Waste Management&rsqu

One person suffered major injuries and six others had minor injuries in a two-vehicle collision Friday night, May 22, in Norco.
The crash happened at 7:14 p.m. at the intersection of Corydon Avenue and River Road, said Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department.
The person with major injuries had to be cut out of the

Norco will send a letter to the State Historic Preservation Office, alleging one of its officials ignored the historical value of several buildings at the Naval base in Norco.
City Councilman Kevin Bash said the city and the Lake Norconian Club Foundation have given Officer Carol Roland-Nawi of the state office enough information about s

Joe Navarrete was standing guard at Slick’s bar in Norco when a barefoot woman in her early 20s came running toward him in a tattered, grass-stained sweater.
Through bloodied mouth and choppy, stuttering breaths, the woman told Navarrete that a man she had just met attacked and tried to rape her in a nearby residential area.

A woman who surprised her 64-year-old mother with a morning mariachi celebration has been fined $200 by the city of Norco. Maricela Lopez, 41, ordered the traditional Mexican serenade weeks in advance, hoping to make it a memorable Mother’s Day. And memorable it was. The band started playing about 7:30 a.m. inside the home, i